The Bozeman weekly chronicle. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1883-1889, 1887-05-18
FINGER NAIL SECRETS.
CHAT CONCERNING THE ANCIENT
ART OF oNYcHoMANcY.
Yellow specb4 Foretell Approaching
Trouble, Black Ones Mean Danger and
Red a Observation-Disclosures Of Good
Fortune-A Curious Belief.

Red NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. Of Good
Fortune-A Curious Belief.
''In these days of chirognomy and chiro-
marcy and all the other ologies and ancies
relating to peoples hands and heads and
noses and ears, it is surprising that no one
has as yet revived the old art of onycho-
NANCY" said South Side physician the
other day to reporter.
"What is onychomancyi Well, It Is the
art of divination by the nails, and was
much practiced by some Of our many times
great-grandfathers I think in the Egh-
teenth century. The most learned and
distinguished Of onychomancists was Je-
rome Cardan, who was considered as great
an oracle in his day as Mr.. Heron-Allen 10
at present, though Cardan never made
such practical use Of his reputation as the
wideawake Englishman has done. He
was languid, blase Partisan, always in.
venting some new method for making Life
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS., by the way, whose
only merit would seem to be originality.
One of his ideas was that gout ought to
be considered not as calamity to be got-
ten rid Of, but as blessing to be culti-
waited, a view with which some folks assur-
edly would not sympathize.
OUTLINES OF THE ART.
IT suppose Monster Cardan found that
even such an original amusement as cul-
tivating the gout palled occasionally, and
found relief in onychomancy. He devoted
great deal of time to the art and became
quite proficient in 1t. He himself was the
proud possessor of extraordinary large
nails-nails so magnificent in volume and
shape that he counted them as 'one of the
four eminent gifts bestowed on him In or
der that he might be distinguished from
the rest of mankind By means of these
nails he is said to have foretold his future
almost exactly, finding it traced out upon
them as plainly as in a map. For In
stance, omens of Ill presented themselves
in the form of livid or black marks on the
nail of the foreflnger, while marks per-
fectly white appearing in the same place
were prognostics Of coming good fortune.
Specks on the thumb nail meant ap-
preaching honors, and riches were herald
ed on the nail Of the index finger. Tho
size, color and precise location Of the dif-
ferent specks were all matters Of ths
greatest Importance.
"Cardan was by no means the only ony-
chomancist. He had great many fol-
lowers and some predecessors. The out
lines of their doctrine are summarized by
Collin Ge Plancy In the 'Diotionaire Infer
nal Yellowish specks on the nails fore
tell approaching troublei black ones mean
danger; red specks, which are very un-
common, give warning that some one has
evil designs against us; pure white specka
are most to be desired, as they are the
forerunners of good fortune. When these
the accomplishment of their prophecies II
remote, but as the nails grow and the
marks approximate the tip Of the fingers .
speedy fulfillment may be expected Of the
unguicular vaticinations' :
A CURIOUS BELIEF.
"Did you know" he continued, ''thas
the Jews held some extraordinary opinions
about nails? They used to believe that,
before the fall, the bodies Of our first pa
rents were perfectly Transparent, and that
of these lucid envelopes Of the soul our
nails were the sole surviving remains.
Curious belief, wasn't itf You wouldn't
care to be SO exquisltely transparent your
self Neither should /.
"The long nail craze is growing more
and more fashionable, isn't its l notice
some of my patients wear regular claws,
and the more fashionable the woman the
longer and more pointed her nails. Isup-
pose it is founded on the Chinese idea that
long nails are indications of gentility,
since they are inconsistent with any me-
chanical employment or such a vulgar
pursuit as working for ones bread. I've
read that in Nubia the long finger nail is
considered an indisputable proof Of good
birth and high rank; SO much SO that the
aspiring Nubian, who wishes to get into
society and belong to the upper ten thou
sand, constantly exposes his or her finger
tips to cedar fires, process which insuree
the expansion Of the nail. It seems to me
that we are fast descending, or ascending,
as you choose to call It, to the Nubian
standard, since length Of nail really seems
to be taken as criterion Of good breed
ing.
''Have you my permission TO use the In
formation about anychomancys Oh, by
all means. My daughters heard me talk
ing about it the other day, and since then
they have been hard at work studying up
all the books they can find upon the sua-
ject. To tell the truth, purposely awAk.
ened their interest in it, with the idea that
little talk about red specks' and black
specks' would be q relief from the eternal
chatter upon head lines and heart lines
and what not which I have been COM
PEELED to listen to for the last six months. "
Chicago Herald.